WordPress is the most popular CMS in the world, and as an open-source platform, it is implemented, coded, and developed in a wide range of ways for different websites.
The availability of themes, page builders, plugins, and hosting plans makes it easy for beginners to quickly set up a site. It also allows for custom theme development, integration, and use of custom code, resulting in some pretty sophisticated applications.
Despite the wide variety in how WordPress is implemented and deployed, some common plugins serve both novice and experienced WordPress users well. Trust is a key factor in an open-source environment, especially when it comes to plugins and codebases developed by others. It is advisable to limit the number of plugins you use. The more plugins you have, the more you’ll need to keep them up to date to reduce security risks and minimize the time spent testing with each update to ensure nothing breaks. Additionally, this approach helps avoid unintended consequences from plugins conflicting with each other.
While this list isn’t comprehensive, and opinions and approaches will vary, here is a curated list of crucial plugins recommended for WordPress websites, ranging from blogs to business-oriented sites.
1. Advanced Custom Fields
Opinions vary on the best way to build WordPress websites and the use of themes and page builders. Without delving into that debate, this section focuses on specific plugins that are trusted and successful. If you are opting for the custom theme route, Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) is highly recommended. This plugin complements custom page builders and provides a great balance between being robust with options and avoiding information overload for users. ACF is well-supported and intended for maximum flexibility in adding fields and customizing taxonomies throughout WordPress, making content editing very easy. Advanced Custom Fields has both free and pro paid versions for developers.
2. WP Rocket
WP Rocket is a plugin that primarily provides caching services. By caching content, your site can load faster, enhancing both user experience and SEO performance. It goes beyond the default WordPress caching options, offering more control to balance caching and content loading to meet your goals and needs. This plugin requires an annual subscription, which varies based on the number of sites you want to use it on and the frequency or nature of updates you’d like to receive during the year.
3. Gravity Forms
There are numerous form builder plugins available for WordPress, with Gravity Forms being the most popular, powerful, and user-friendly. The ability to quickly and easily create forms to embed into any page is essential. The reliability of the plugin, its integration with various email marketing platforms and CRM systems, and its notification features make it a go-to form builder plugin. Gravity Forms, like many form builders, has pricing tiers based on the desired feature set and offers a free trial for paid features, aiding in the evaluation process.
4. Better Search Replace
For projects or updates that require migration, the Better Search Replace plugin is indispensable. It fills gaps and automates tedious, time-consuming tasks. Whether it’s finding broken links after a migration, performing a find and replace, or moving a database, this plugin covers all fronts. However, it requires human logic to apply correctly, as it is powerful but needs user input to manage migrations, updates, and fixes. Better Search Replace offers both basic and pro options at a range of price points based on features needed.
5. Imagify
Beyond caching, which is vital for speed, images are one of the biggest contributors to page load times. Imagify is an image compression tool that automates the optimization process without sacrificing quality. This time-saving plugin is particularly useful when users upload large images and you cannot modify WordPress’ default upload settings. Imagify has a nominal monthly subscription price, tiered based on the number of images your site hosts.
6. Yoast
Yoast is a powerful SEO plugin that gives users control over various aspects crucial for SEO, from indexing files to specific on-page factors. Though it can come with a learning curve and potentially cause conflicts with other apps, it remains the industry-standard SEO plugin for WordPress. Some users have switched to alternatives due to security issues or bugs, but Yoast still offers robust features. Yoast provides both free and premium versions.
7. Redirection
Even without undergoing a website migration, you might occasionally need 301 redirects. When a page is moved, deleted, or content is updated and republished, Redirection allows you to quickly and easily redirect the old URL to the new one. This simple tool enables users to specify old and new URLs through WordPress and save the change without needing a developer or IT support. The Redirection plugin supports conditional redirects and is supported by donations.
Conclusion
This isn’t an all-encompassing list of plugins; quality alternatives likely exist. However, these plugins are trusted tools based on years of experience in developing custom WordPress sites and working with pre-built themes. The plugins listed have shown consistent reliability, security, and stability with regular updates. While exceptions can happen, these remain critical plugins in the toolbox for WordPress sites we build and manage.
More Resources:
- 10 Reasons Why WordPress Is the Best CMS for SEO
- 9 Best AMP WordPress Plugins for Speed, Search & Tracking
- 6 Awesome WordPress Plugins That Will Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly
